It’s impossible to imagine the horrors people like Fatima, a pregnant woman in Gaza, wake up to every day.

“The tent is suffocating, small, and hot. And the smoke from the fires affects the lungs and breathing. For someone pregnant, it is very difficult. My children get fever and burns from the sand and heat. And strange bugs come into the tent and sting them. I hope that when I give birth, the war will be over, and we can go home safely.”

Fatima is one of more than 150,000 pregnant women surviving the unrelenting nightmare in Gaza. She was sheltering in Khan Younis at the time she spoke with our teams, but Fatima and her family have since been forced to evacuate for the 6th or 7th time.

Amidst this crisis, doctors report alarming trends such as skyrocketing numbers of preterm and underweight babies. Pregnant women are suffering from severe malnourishment, dehydration, stress, fear, and exhaustion. There is also a critical shortage of nutritional supplements for pregnant and breastfeeding women.

But thanks to donations from supporters like you, UNFPA is making motherhood safer in Gaza. In June alone, UNFPA:

• Delivered supplies to support 4,000 safe births
• Established 2 maternity clinics to support women like Fatima
• Operated 19 mobile health teams to provide maternal health services and primary care across Gaza
• Recruited 29 new midwives
• Distributed 150 emergency birth kits so women can prevent infection during childbirth, wherever they are

But, even with all the care we’ve delivered, so much more is needed.

Will you make your first gift today to deliver lifesaving care to more women and girls like Fatima in Gaza and wherever your help is needed most?

We condemn the violence in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel, and echo the UN Secretary-General’s call for a sustained humanitarian ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages by Hamas. The suffering must end and peace must prevail.

Thank you for being there.

— USA for UNFPA